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[64bitmodels]

Remember this graph? It's a pretty interesting graph because it showed that the most played video games in 2023 were years old games.
Some dumb people took this to mean that we're going back to the old school singleplayer games and that it's all because the modern gaming industry sucks. But I don't see it that way. These are all live service games.

But the thing that pisses me off about them... is that they're just OLD.

Fortnite, Roblox, Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto 5, Rocket League, Mario Kart 8, League of Legends...

None of these games are younger than 7 years old.

We've been hearing about these same exact names in Video games for 10+ years now. These same properties have been dominating the charts for YEARS. Why? I think a lot of it has to do with the GaaS model.
It's so much easier to update a game and keep adding new content to it as opposed to making a sequel and revamping it from the ground up, or getting a new IP. But because of that, these same games keep dominating the charts, keep hearing about them over and over again.

I can give props to Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Splatoon because they at least have the nerve to update their franchise with a new entry every couple of years. You can go back and talk about what previous games did right, and different aspects of different games you liked. You don't get much of that with GaaS. You're stuck on the latest update, and you have to keep hearing about the same exact game for years upon years upon years.... it's stagnant. We don't get new multiplayer games because they can just keep updating the old ones, and people will keep playing.

It's so. Fucking. LAME!

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Yes, GaaS are cancer, but a cancer that keeps you alive....GaaS are Deadpool.

 

[bender]

Uh oh. You've summoned him.

 

[ReBurn]

None of these games are younger than 7 years old.

So you're saying that these games are timeless?

 

[64bitmodels]

Yes, GaaS are cancer, but a cancer that keeps you alive....GaaS are Deadpool.

... seems oxymoronic. A cancer that keeps you alive. How does that work?

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

Just one of the many reasons for this is getting the player addicted to the grind wheel which causes them to not try or buy other games. When I was playing Destiny 2, so many people I talked to only played that and Fortnite, for instance.

 

[DonF]

the concept of GaaS is awesome, the execution is shit. they prey on FOMO and whales. I hate it.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

... seems oxymoronic. A cancer that keeps you alive. How does that work?

Deadpool

From ChatGPT:
His healing factor also interacts with his cancer in a unique way. Instead of curing his cancer, it keeps it in check by constantly regenerating his cells, including the cancerous ones. This means that Deadpool's body is in a continuous state of flux, with the cancer cells being regenerated as quickly as they are destroyed. This constant regeneration process contributes to his disfigured appearance but also ensures his survival.

 

[bender]

... seems oxymoronic. A cancer that keeps you alive. How does that work?

 

[Bloobs]

Yes, GaaS are cancer, but a cancer that keeps you alive....GaaS are Deadpool.

 

[Hudo]

I think there should be far more GAAS games. Everyone should make at least 5.

I want the market so oversaturated and unappealingly competitive that this whole fucking shit tanks because the player fragmentation is so severe that all games end up with like 2000 active players, which is not sustainable. The premise on which these fucking things get greenlit on is that there is still space left in the market to be the next Fortnite (player numbers).

So we should all hope that the market gets fucking filled to the brim with GAAS games. We need more.

 

[Zones]

Topics like these fall apart the moment you look beyond these live-service games and see what else typically becomes immensely popular.

For example, I would say it's an objective fact that Fortnite has evolved and expanded more in 7 years than mainline Pokemon games have done in almost three decades.

Am I supposed to hate on Fortnite while celebrating stagnate franchises like Pokemon simply because Fortnite is completly free-to-play, whereas a buggy Pokemon game charges $60?

 

[zeroluck]

Most single players game are GAAS in a sense, sequels that reused everything from the previous games, even without major change to the gameplays. GAAS model is good the problem is the their design around addiction to keep people playing.

 

[UltimaKilo]

The current generation of players loves it, and they make a lot of money. So the market has decided, regardless of what we think. GaaS is not the issue, at all.

 

[STARSBarry]

Topics like these fall apart the moment you look beyond these live-service games and see what else typically becomes immensely popular.

For example, I would say it's an objective fact that Fortnite has evolved and expanded more in 7 years than mainline Pokemon games have done in almost three decades.

Am I supposed to hate on Fortnite while celebrating stagnate franchises like Pokemon simply because Fortnite is completly free-to-play, whereas a buggy Pokemon game charges $60?

No... your supposed to criticise both... because they both fucking suck in different ways.

 

[AJUMP23]

I am not a big fan of GaaS. But if you want to play them go ahead.

 

[Loomy]

You're using a table showing top games by MAU. Of course they're going to all be GaaS games. Every other game out there people play through once or twice and then move on to something else.

Even if your premise was not based on faulty data, how does this prove stagnation? There are a lot of amazing games that aren't GaaS being released every year. They're just not going to show up in a table of top 10 games by MAU.

 

[Fbh]

GAAS generally don't appeal to me but I also don't really see the issue with this either.
Look at Fortnite back when it launched and look at it now, from visuals to gameplay to game modes it has undergone a lot of big changes over the years. Does it really make that big of a difference if instead of "Fortnite 3" it's still just the same game that has changed and evolved over the years?.

If I put myself in the position of kids now it's hard not to see why they like it. If back in 2007 you had told me Halo 3 was going to indefinitely get free maps, game modes, weapons, graphical upgrades and events (with paid cosmetics) I'd probably have been supper happy and kept playing it as my main multiplayer shooter for the entire generation (and beyond)

 

[Killjoy-NL]

Maybe another meltdown will help?

 

[64bitmodels]

Does it really make that big of a difference if instead of "Fortnite 3" it's still just the same game that has changed and evolved over the years?.

Maybe you can say this for Fortnite. But other games haven't evolved nearly as much, like Mario Kart, Minecraft, Roblox, or GTA Online.

Even then, these GaaS are so all consuming that these companies don't bother making new IP either.

 

[wvnative]

This has been obvious for years.

 

[ReyBrujo]

The problem is people playing the same games and same maps for years making the industry think this is the path. But hey, that's what gamers wanted, replayability.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

The old model has been usurped for a reason. It's weaker.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Most single players game are GAAS in a sense, sequels that reused everything from the previous games, even without major change to the gameplays

i was thinking the same with expansion and DLCs. but they have fundamentally different business models.

GAAS model is good the problem is the their design around addiction to keep people playing.

I think it is more insidious than that. you are not playing just for the sake of playing, but for the "progression" or loot, which are designed to make you waste more time than needed. it's a very toxic relationship masked as "fun".

the advantage/double-edged sword of video games is that they are incredibly engaging (I don't think they are addicting) so people don't see how the game is using these techniques to keep them engaged for the real reason: to spend money; which could be "fair" or manipulative.

 

[DonF]

Topics like these fall apart the moment you look beyond these live-service games and see what else typically becomes immensely popular.

For example, I would say it's an objective fact that Fortnite has evolved and expanded more in 7 years than mainline Pokemon games have done in almost three decades.

Am I supposed to hate on Fortnite while celebrating stagnate franchises like Pokemon simply because Fortnite is completly free-to-play, whereas a buggy Pokemon game charges $60?

not fair cause you are comparing fornite to the worse offender. Compare fornite to zelda, for example.

 

[Mr Hyde]

I despise GAAS. I think it's ruining the industry.

 

[Red5]

Yep, chasing GAAS model gave us Suicide Squad instead of an Arkham Sequel, fuck GAAS.

 

[Bernardougf]

Addiction creates cults and makes a lot of money ... so there you go.

 

[Ozriel]

OP expects to see Single player game in a list focused on MAUs

None of these games are younger than 7 years old.

These games wouldn't be on that list if they werent being kept evergreen with fresh content.

 

[cormack12]

Men_in_Boxes reading this thread

 

[rm082e]

Game development costs have gotten so high companies are incentivized to chase GaaS success over risking a traditional game failing. If you don't like this situation, the only way you can try to fix it is to vote with your wallet for traditional single player and multi-player games.

Unfortunately, there are too many games, and they all go on sale quickly, so "the rest of us" find it really hard to justify spending lots of money to prop up what we like.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

Men_in_Boxes reading this thread

More like...

 

[bender]

Perception:

More like...

Reality:

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

 

[Laptop1991]

Yep, i agree and i won't buy Gaas games either, not just because they are cash cows designed to fleece you over time, but also they just arn't very good games in my opinion and i'm not wasting god knows how much money on average games!.

 

[Danjin44]

I personally stay away from these GaaS shit, thankfully I’m still getting my proper SP games especially this year I got plenty and still more to come.

 

[TropicanaTwista]

As someone who really doesn't play GAAS or MP games, always feel like this vendetta that people have against they are just weird. It's a type of game, similar to how SP games have different genres. I've always hating fighting and racing sim games, but don't consistently bitch online on how they are ruining the industry or anything like that. If they're not for you, don't buy em. There is plenty of other games out there. I can't imagine anyone out there is truly desperate or hurting for new games with how many and how large games are nowadays.

 

[Killjoy-NL]

As someone who really doesn't play GAAS or MP games, always feel like this vendetta that people have against they are just weird. It's a type of game, similar to how SP games have different genres. I've always hating fighting and racing sim games, but don't consistently bitch online on how they are ruining the industry or anything like that. If they're not for you, don't buy em. There is plenty of other games out there. I can't imagine anyone out there is truly desperate or hurting for new games with how many and how large games are nowadays.

You're absolutely right.

I think it's mostly envy from sp games fans towards those who play Gaas, because sp don't last nearly as long Gaas.

The dumbest thing about this whole debate is that a large part of the anti-Gaas crowd acts like it's two camps (sp vs gaas), while normal people just play both.

Gaas titles are perfect for filling the gaps between (major) sp releases.

 

[Meicyn]

The dumbest thing about this whole debate is that a large part of the anti-Gaas crowd acts like it's two camps (sp vs gaas), while normal people just play both.

Yep. It’s weird watching people foam at the mouth on this forum. Meanwhile, I’m playing both Elden Ring DLC and Fortnite.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

Your argument is based on the top 10 games based on MAU?

Given the very definition of a GaaS compared to a traditional game, of course the top 10 games by MAU will be GaaS.... like... WTF did you expect?!

 

[tmlDan]

why are you mad we're having fun and saving money, bugger off lol

 

[Icymanipulator]

Where are the games like Genshin Impact or Fate, or any of the other big gacha games?

Don’t those games out earn a lot of the stuff on the OPs chart? Genshin alone is bringing something like 30-60$ million a month

 

[Dr. Claus]

I always get sad seeing the large number of folks with more money than sense in these threads defending trash. They should respect themselves more and play games that aren’t thinly veiled scams.

 

[Angry_Megalodon]

Where are the games like Genshin Impact or Fate, or any of the other big gacha games?

Don’t those games out earn a lot of the stuff on the OPs chart? Genshin alone is bringing something like 30-60$ million a month

Mobile and PC Client, which are not computed.

The interesting thing is that many SP full-priced games have become GaaS in disguise, like Assassins Creed and other franchises chopped up in chapters like Final Fantasy VII.

 

[Icymanipulator]

I always get sad seeing the large number of folks with more money than sense in these threads defending trash. They should respect themselves more and play games that aren’t thinly veiled scams.

You should look into Casinos
It’s kind of a huge industry
People of all walks of life enjoy gambling

 

[Sushi_Combo]

I always get sad seeing the large number of folks with more money than sense in these threads defending trash. They should respect themselves more and play games that aren’t thinly veiled scams.

These games have gone through some vigorous skinner box tests to ensure their games are addictive and it's been working out great for them.
A new generation of kids will only know these types of "Games" and nothing else.

 

[jakinov]

Remember this graph? It's a pretty interesting graph because it showed that the most played video games in 2023 were years old games.
Some dumb people took this to mean that we're going back to the old school singleplayer games and that it's all because the modern gaming industry sucks. But I don't see it that way. These are all live service games.

But the thing that pisses me off about them... is that they're just OLD.

Fortnite, Roblox, Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto 5, Rocket League, Mario Kart 8, League of Legends...

None of these games are younger than 7 years old.

We've been hearing about these same exact names in Video games for 10+ years now. These same properties have been dominating the charts for YEARS. Why? I think a lot of it has to do with the GaaS model.
It's so much easier to update a game and keep adding new content to it as opposed to making a sequel and revamping it from the ground up, or getting a new IP. But because of that, these same games keep dominating the charts, keep hearing about them over and over again.

I can give props to Call of Duty, Battlefield, and Splatoon because they at least have the nerve to update their franchise with a new entry every couple of years. You can go back and talk about what previous games did right, and different aspects of different games you liked. You don't get much of that with GaaS. You're stuck on the latest update, and you have to keep hearing about the same exact game for years upon years upon years.... it's stagnant. We don't get new multiplayer games because they can just keep updating the old ones, and people will keep playing.

It's so. Fucking. LAME!

The thing about the GaaS model is that it's not just new content like skins. The updates to many of the games you mentioned have included graphical overhauls, brand new characters, new modes, new maps, and drastically revamped gameplay mechanics. Some of these games are updated so much that they may as well be brand new games. Fornite from a survival game to a battle royale with all kinds of new modes, and big push for user-generated-content. Roblox is all about UGC and it updates it's game to facilitate more and more of it and that's why it lasted so long. League of legends has added 140 new characters to their game, with a bunch of skins, but also over time they've went into and revamped the art work for all the skins/models, and even rework how these characters were played, sounded, etc. to entice people to use underused characters. They've added new modes and have revamped their main mode multiple times that they dynamic/meta of the game changed.

It's not like traditional non GaaS games don't always "revamp from the ground up" I would argue that most sequels are pretty iterative. Some interations obviously bigger than the other but not many sequels actual start from the ground up. But does it really matter if they do or not? Because you don't always need to. You would really only do it because you needed to not for the sake of doing it otherwise your wasting money/time. \

 

[Dr. Claus]

You should look into Casinos
It’s kind of a huge industry
People of all walks of life enjoy gambling

Difference being the vast, vast majority know that Gambling is manipulative trash and freely admit it while still partaking.

These GAAS fanatics are desperate to paint it as the next big thing in gaming, that it is actually good for the industry, and that there is very little to nothing wrong with it.

These games have gone through some vigorous skinner box tests to ensure their games are addictive and it's been working out great for them.
A new generation of kids will only know these types of "Games" and nothing else.

It is a shame. Thankfully PC exists and I can still enjoy classic games like Thief 2 and Sam and Max. Fuck GAAS.

 

[Plague Doctor]

I eagerly await the people that cite the 1 successful GaaS for every 50 failures. And the historically successful and innovative franchises that took a nosedive when going GaaS in modern entries.

Watching people shamelessly contort themselves for their mindless love of shitty entertainment and business practices is a passtime of mine. Its the free show that keeps on giving.

GaaS only benefits corporations seeking to endlessly nickel and dime their player base in the forms of deceptive monetization where they hide the real price behind tchotchke fun bucks and also FOMO in the form of battle passes. What used to be standard features are now locked behind moneywalls or jumping through hoops meant to discourage you into paying money. You get less gameplay in the long run unless you intend to pay or to endlessly grind.

 

[SHA]

Skyrim times 20!!!